


Sleeping Tony

by Lady_Nightshade



Series: Just Another Day in the Tower [23]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Fairy Tale Elements, Fairy Tale Retellings, Gen, rated for language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-13
Updated: 2017-06-13
Packaged: 2018-11-13 15:09:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 13,966
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11187699
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lady_Nightshade/pseuds/Lady_Nightshade
Summary: Once upon a time in a land far far away...Yup, here's another fairy tale for the series.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is a mesh of several versions of Sleeping Beauty I heard/watched as a child. I had a lot of fun with this one but it totally turned into a monster! There's multiple chapters, but it's all already written, so I'll post them pretty quickly. It's just fluff and crack, so have fun and don't think about it too hard. As usual, it's unbeta'd and I own none of the characters.

Once upon a time in a land far _far_ away, there lived a king and his sad queen. The queen was sad because they had no children, though she desperately wanted to be a mother. The king wanted to make his wife happy and looked into all sorts of scientific help, but in the end, they still remained without an heir. Queen Maria would often walk through the gardens of the palace, reading scientific journals that might give her a solution to the problem.

The queen knew every inch of the gardens so well that she could walk the grounds and read without bothering to look where she was going. What the queen did _not_ know, however, was that she was frequently watched by an elf named Clint. Despite what some may have told you, elves can often be found living on palace grounds- they love the trees and flowers (not all of them feel the need to go chasing after evil jewelry or be part of an entourage/posse… or ride _elks_ …). _This_ particular elf lived in a tree with his friend near one of the far walls of gardens. The tree was very large and very old and the two friends had made their home inside the tree and deep in tunnels under it among its roots. The elf would regularly lounge in the branches of the palace’s many trees, enjoying the views and playing tricks on the guards from time to time. He usually did it when the queen was in sight, hoping his jokes would make her smile. Sometimes they did, but most of the time they didn’t.

One day as the queen walked through the gardens, Clint caught sight of her coming toward the tree he was laying in. He’d picked a particularly private part of the garden to lounge in today, in a tall willow tree.

The queen came and sat under the tree looking more distressed than usual. She’d run out of journals to read and doctors to speak to. She was out of options. With a sob, put her head in her hands and cried.

Clint grimaced. He hated to see the queen so sad. “What bothers you, your majesty?” He asked from his branch.

The queen lifted her head and looked around for the unfamiliar voice. She’d thought she knew all the palace guards but she didn’t recognize this voice. A throat cleared above her, as if to draw her attention into the tree.

Clint had sat up from his branch and was now leaning against the trunk, one leg bent, one hanging, his eyes watching her intently like a hawk. “Hello,” he said.

Queen Maria wiped her tears. “Hello. What are you doing in a tree?”

Clint shrugged. “I like being up high- I can see things better. That, and I like trees.”

Suddenly, it struck the queen. “You’re a _sprite_ , aren’t you? You’re the one who plays the jokes on the guards,” she said with a small smile.

Clint bowed his head at her with a smile. “I prefer the term ‘elf.’ My name is Clint. Why do you cry, your highness?”

The queen sighed. “For years my husband and I have tried to have a child, but we have never been successful. I have read every article, journal, and book on the best ways to cure a barren womb but have found none that _work_. I have consulted all of the doctors, midwives, medicine men, and healers. But none of them have been able to help me. Today I have realized that I will have to give up my dream of having a family.”

Clint frowned as the queen’s eyes filled with tears again. The kingdom had prospered under King Howard, but it wasn’t until he’d married Maria that the people had begun to truly shine. She’d brought with her kindness and grace, taking care of those in need and as a result had lifted the spirits of everyone in the land. She was the reason Clint stayed in the kingdom- there was always laughter here. Because of _her_. He wanted to return her kindness.

“Hmmmm…” Clint sat in thought. “He could probably swing it…” he mumbled to himself.

The queen sniffled and looked up at him in question.

Clint smiled a lopsided grin. “I might just be able to help you with your problem.”

The queen gasped. “ _Really_?”

Clint nodded as he stood up. “Really. Meet me here again this evening after your evening meal and I will have an answer for you. Please excuse me- I need to speak with a friend.”

Queen Maria blinked and before she knew it, the elf was gone. “Huh…” she thought to herself. “He’d make a great spy…”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clint goes to see a guy about a baby

Clint made his way through the trees of the palace grounds toward the one he shared with Bruce. Even though Bruce was more of a solitary sort, he didn’t seem to mind Clint’s company. Maybe because Clint was usually a pretty quiet elf, choosing to stay in the branches and nooks of their home, above everything. Coming inside through the hidden door and making his way down into the room that Bruce kept as a lab of sorts, Clint sat down on a (mostly) clear table and stared at Bruce’s back.

Eventually, Clint heard Bruce sigh and watched as he took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes before replacing them back on his face. Clint stayed silent until Bruce turned and faced him.

Bruce eyed Clint. Usually he didn’t come to see Bruce during the day, preferring instead to be outside until the evening hours. And even then, the elf usually didn’t sit on low surfaces like tables and counters. Crossing his arms, he leaned against the table he’d been working over and waited expectantly.

“So, I have this friend…” Clint began.

Bruce smirked. “Uh-huh.”

“Who’s trying to have a baby…”

Bruce’s eyebrows raised at that. He’d originally thought Clint was speaking about himself, but now he wasn’t so sure.

“But she and her husband have tried everything and so I got to thinking that maybe you could help them out?”

Bruce nodded in consideration. It’d be easy enough to help give them a bit of magical help. And it was rare for Clint to ask him for anything, so whoever this person was, they must be pretty deserving for Clint to be coming to him. “Does this friend have a name?”

“Maria…”

Bruce stopped. “Maria… as in Maria _Stark_ , _Queen_ of the kingdom?”

“Oh, so you know her too,” Clint said grinning.

Bruce took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes again. It wasn’t a secret that the royals were childless, but… “ _Clint_ … _please_ tell me you haven’t been spying on the king and queen… while they were…” doing _that_.

“Not _spying_ … But I did end up seeing her crying in the gardens today. I asked her what was wrong, and she told me. I thought you might be able to help them, so I told her I’d meet her back in the gardens tonight after their meal with an answer. So, will you help them?”

Bruce rolled his eyes. Of _course_ he’d help the queen. “Yes, of course. It’s a simple enough recipe, but I’ll need your help as well. The ingredients are pretty spread out.”

Clint nodded. He could do that. How hard could it be?

Famous last words…

A few hours later after hearing the ingredient list, Clint was almost regretting ever opening his mouth. _Almost_. The look of hesitant hope in the queen’s eyes as she waited for him reminded him why he’d spoken in the first place. “Good evening, your majesty,” he said, plopping himself down on a low hanging branch in the tree the queen was waiting by.

“ _Oh_! Good evening!” she said anxiously.

“I’ve spoken with a friend, and have good news for you. It will take a few days to gather all of the supplies, but within a fortnight you shall be pregnant.”

The queen’s eyes filled with tears of joy. “Thank you! _Thank you_!”

Clint nodded and smiled. “I must leave you now if I am to be back in time. I’ve much to do. But I’ll be in touch with you soon.” With a wink and a smile, Clint was gone, and the queen was alone again.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clint goes ingredient hunting. How hard can it be?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had fun with this chapter. Clint has a potty mouth.

Clint’s foot slipped off the path straight into the bog. “ _Oh, gross_ …” he murmured as he lifted his boot out of the stagnant water. Swamps were not places he liked to be. Remembering Bruce’s warning about the rodents that were reported to be of an unusual size, Clint adjusted the bow slung on his back as he dove deeper into the swamp. Ingredient one on the list was moss. But not just _any_ moss. No. This was _special_ moss. So special it only grew in the deepest and obviously darkest parts of the most inhospitable swamp in the seven kingdoms. Why were the best ingredients always the hardest to get to? Why couldn’t you just grow them in your garden? Witches grew all the ingredients that _they_ needed in _their_ gardens. Why couldn’t Bruce do that too? (“I’m not a _witch_ , Clint” “The question still _stands_ , Bruce.”)

Then _everyone_ could have babies… _You_ get a baby! And _you_ get a baby! And _you_! And _you_!

Mumbling to himself about the ridiculousness of magic ingredients, Clint stopped dead in his tracks at what he saw. First, he saw the moss ( _YAY_!). Second, he saw the spiders in front of the moss ( _HOLY CANDY APPLES ON STICKS_!). _Five foot long spiders_.

 _‘Da’fuq did they come from?’_ he asked himself.

Why did it have to be _spiders_? Why couldn’t it be, like, _bunnies_? Even man-eating bunnies Clint could get behind. But _spiders_? _Really_? Grumbling to himself and trying to shake the heebie-jeebie feelings, Clint took aim, determined to get that moss.

*

Clint’s next destination was an orchard at the top of a mountain. Who the hell plants an orchard on the top of a _mountain_? Technically, it was a butte since it had a flat plateau at it’s top instead of a peak. But _still_. Trudging up the mountain, Clint kept an eye out for any more creepy creatures. The spiders in the swamp had made the worst hissing shrieks as they’d died. Not that he hadn’t taken some satisfaction in their demise ( _gross, gross, gross_ ), but still. He’d have new nightmare material for months.

Finally seeing the orchard, Clint switched to stealth mode, being mindful in case there was a guardian or something. Bruce hadn’t mentioned anything about one (he hadn’t mentioned the spiders, _either_ … ‘ _Thanks, Bruce- way to be a bro’_ ), but Clint could remember stories of dragons guarding apples and he was in no mood to get broiled. Though, _apples_? Really? Don’t dragons have anything better to be guarding? Like a hoard? _Well, whatever_.   He was there. Making his way quietly through the orchard, Clint followed Bruce’s directions and made his way to the center of the orchard where the apple tree was. Leaping into the tree, he made sure to pluck 3 ripe ones.   They looked like ordinary apples to him, but supposedly the juice from them would be what Bruce needed. Clint packed them carefully away in his bag with the moss and hopped out of the tree with a shrug. Huh, maybe there really wasn’t anything standing guard in the orchard.

“ _RAAAAAAWR_!!!!!”

“ _Aw, shit_.”

* 

Clint grumbled to himself about the cold as he trudged up the mountain. Where were those big dogs with those containers of booze around their necks? If he had to be cold and uncomfortable, at least let him drink until he forgot his discomfort. He’d saved the snow as the last ingredient because, _duh, snow melts_. And the recipe calls for _snow_. _Not_ _water_. But of course, like with the other ingredients, not just _any_ snow. This had to be snow from the very top of the highest peak in all the seven kingdoms. He’d been climbing for hours. At least the snow felt good on the burns he’d gotten from when that dragon had gotten a little too close for comfort. Lucky for Clint the thing was a terrible shot. Well, a _mostly_ terrible shot. It should probably wear glasses, though to be fair, Clint had never heard of an optometrist that specialized in dragon-sized lenses.

Finally, Clint made it up to the top.   Pulling out his insulated mug, he filled it with snow before twisting the cap tightly back in place. This had to be the easiest of the three ingredients to get and Clint was feeling pretty smug about it. That is, until he slipped.

Arms wind-milling, Clint had a moment of sheer panic before catching himself. _Woah_. That was close. He’d almost fallen off… lucky for him he had such great reflexe-

“ _YAAAAAAAAAAARRRGH_!!!!!”

Apparently, not _that_ great.   Down he rolled. _And rolled. And rolled. And rolled_ …

Clint was going to be sick. Like seriously sick. His world had been reduced to one continuous rolling motion. By the time he’d stopped moving he was so dizzy his body knew he’d stopped but his head had yet to catch on.

“ _Uuuughh_ …”

“Oh good, you’re back,” Bruce said, standing over a very wobbly Clint.

“ _Uh-huh_ …” Clint nodded.

At least, Bruce thought he was nodding. It was kind of hard to tell- Clint’s body was still swaying and sort of lurching around in a rocking motion. While he was laying down. _Weird_.

“ _Snow_ …”

Bruce surveyed the amount of snow covering the elf and littering the ground around him from where the snowball that had formed around him as he’d rolled had broken apart. “Yes, you did well. Though we didn’t need this much snow… just a handful would have been sufficient.”

Clint sighed, finally getting his head on straight. “Backpack… s’all in there…”

“Oh, good.” Bruce reached for it before offering a hand up to Clint.

“Nope. You go ‘head. I’m… I’mma stay here for a …bit.”

Bruce shrugged. “Alright, I’ll see you inside. It shouldn’t take long to make.”

Clint nodded before flopping back into the snow that littered ground. “ _Cool_ …”

*

A few hours later, Bruce was done and (a much more stable and less dizzy) Clint happily delivered the potion to a very excited queen. After a slight mishap where King Howard almost drank it (“No, dear, that’s _mine_. Get your own.” “But darling, I’m thirsty too!” “Trust me, you won’t like it.” “Why not?” “Because I said so.” “But-” “Shut up, Howard, and come to bed.” “Yes, dear.”), the queen soon found herself with child.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A prince is born and we meet the fairies!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, I had fun with this section!

On the day of their son’s birth the whole kingdom rejoiced. King Howard decided to throw a large banquet in celebration of his son Anthony’s arrival to ( _show everyone in the kingdom how freakin’ awesome I am and am totally sure to be the best father in the world EVAR- so come by beeches! Food, dancing, baby gifts! OH YEAH!_ ) give the nobles the chance to pay their respects (after reading King Howard’s invitation draft, Queen Maria fired him from the party planning and took over- much to the relief of the servants).

The invitations were sent out (the good ones) and before long acceptance letters made their way by carrier from all corners of the kingdom. The men of science promised to attend with the makings for a dream science lab for the new prince for the day when he was old enough to use them. The men of technology and engineering promised to attend and bring with them gifts of tool kits and all of the supplies needed for a young engineer to become great. The brewers guilds promised to be in attendance and bring (though not appropriate for a child) all of the liquor for the celebration (King Howard particularly liked it when they came around).   Even the princes from the neighboring kingdom of Asgardia promised to attend. But the most anticipated of guests were the 12 fairies from the realms. Unlike other guests, the fairies would bestow upon the prince virtues that would manifest in him later in life.

There were actually 13 of them, but Howard had only invited 12. Why? Well, fairies only eat off of golden plates ( _obviously_ ) and Howard, like any king worth his socks had golden plates (also, _obviously_ ). The problem was, he only had 12. But instead of simply having another set made (because who the hell had 13 sets of _anything?_ ), he simply didn’t invite one of the fairies ( _“Problem solved! What could possibly go wrong? …Don’t tell my wife.”_ ).

The day of the party arrived and everyone was in attendance. The guests piled their presents high in the adjoining room to the feasting hall and then the party began! After dinner and dancing the announcement was made for the guests to take their places along the hall’s walls, leaving space in the center of the dance floor for the baby prince’s cradle and for the fairy presentations of gifts to begin. Fairy Darcy was first to step forward.

“Awwww, he’s so cute and chubby…” She mumbled as she leaned into the cradle. “ _Aren’t you a cute little fatso. Yes you are! Yes you are!_ ” Composing herself, Fairy Darcy bowed to the king and queen. “Your majesties. I bestow upon the little prince the gift of whit!” Everyone ooohed and awwwed and murmured in agreement that this was a fine gift for a prince to have. Waving her wand around, Fairy Darcy tapped the baby on his lips gently. “There you go, sweetie!” She said with a smile. “He’s gonna be a snarky little shit!” she said, addressing the royals. Behind her, Fairy Jane and Fairy Steve smacked their heads as the queen’s eyes bulged a bit.

“ _Language_ …” Fairy Steve muttered. Clearing his throat, Fairy Steve stepped up in his trademark red, white, and blue tights and tunic decorated with white stars. No one knew why he dressed that way… he just liked to. Don’t judge. If Fairy Darcy could wear large sweaters with cats printed on them and tights with galaxy prints, he could wear stripes and stars. “Your majesties,” he said, bowing respectfully, “I bestow upon the prince the gift of strategy. He will have a sharp mind.” Waving his wand he smiled down at the baby before tapping him on his head just as gently as Fairy Darcy had. Again the crowd murmured their approval.

Next came Fairy Bucky, who slapped Fairy Steve on the back as he walked by. “Good one, Punk,” he said quietly as he passed.

Sauntering up to the cradle in his black tactical gear (no one knew why he wore armor when most of the other fairies all preferred tights and light weight materials, but he was a little intimidating with a metal arm, so no one questioned his fashion sense), he winked at the queen before bowing respectfully. “I bestow the gift of good looks to the baby.” The crowd seemed pleased with this. None of them were opposed to having a handsome prince rule their kingdom. “And because I’m feeling extra generous today, the gift of flirtation, too.” Again, Fairy Steve facepalmed. “Hold still, squirt,” Fairy Bucky said, waving his wand around in much the same manner as Fairy Darcy and Fairy Steve before him. Tapping him between the eyes, Fairy Bucky smirked. “Go get ‘em, tiger.”

Fairy Jane and Fairy Erik bestowed the gifts of science and intellect. Fairies Maria, Sam, Agent, and Rhodey each gave the little prince leadership, loyalty, courage, and friendship. With each gift, the crowd grew happier and happier. Their kingdom would be in good hands when the prince grew up.

Next it was Fairy Fury’s turn. He, like Fairy Bucky, preferred leather to silk and tights (though Fairy Jane preferred plaid). In all his eye-patched glory, Fairy Fury approached the bassinet. “Your majesties, I bestow upon the prince the gift of just don’t give a fu-”

Before he could finish, Fairy Natasha appeared out of nowhere and clamped a hand over his mouth. “Let’s just call that _independence and a pioneer’s attitude_ ,” she supplied with a charming smile to the royals. Fairy Fury glared at her. Fairy Natasha glared back. The entire room held its breath and waited to see what would happen. Finally, Fairy Fury shrugged. Fine. Whatever. It’s not like he gave a fuck. Letting go of his mouth, Fairy Natasha held out her wand. “And I bestow the gift of charisma.” Together the two waved their wands at the baby before stepping back.

“ _Ooo! Ooo! My_ turn _! My_ turn _!_ ” Shouted Fairy Deadpool as he ran over to the prince. “Hi there, kiddo,” he said, glancing down at the baby. “ _Coochie coochie coo!_ ” Turning his head, Fairy Deadpool looked to his left at a blank space in the crowd. “And _hello_ to you _too_ , reader. Enjoying the ridiculousness of this yet? I am. It’s the first time she’s put me in a story! Now if only I could get her to write me some nookie, I’d be _peachy_!”

_Stop it, Wade. You’re giving Fairy Steve a headache._

Fairy Steve sighed. “ _Wade_ …”

“Right!” Fairy Deadpool straightened back up. “For the baby I’ve got a…” he began, patting down what seemed to be invisible pockets in his skintight suit, “ _coloring book_!” Everyone stared at Fairy Deadpool as he held up a coloring book and a large box of crayons above his head like a baboon presenting the next lion king.

_“Oh, I liked that movie!”_

Steve facepalmed yet again. Fairy Sam was beginning to think that Steve would give himself a concussion if he kept that up. Fairy Jane wondered where Fairy Deadpool had managed to hide both a coloring book _and_ a box of jumbo crayons on his person when his clothing was so tight. Fairy Darcy shrugged. “Could be worse,” she murmured to Fairy Steve. “He could have made him batty like him-”

“ _AND_ the gift of 4 th wall breakage!”

This time, all the other fairies facepalmed.

_Awww Jezus…_

“ _Whaaaaaaat_?” Fairy Deadpool asked, as they dragged him away, still waving his wand at the little prince. “It’s a _great_ gift! He’ll never be lonely- _ever_! He’ll always have someone to talk to!”

Shaking their heads, Fairies Bucky and Steve dragged him away while Fairy Natasha waved her wand at the baby again. Looking at the mortified king and queen, she tapped the baby with it. “That should negate his… ‘ _gift’_.” The king and queen visibly relaxed. “Mostly,” she added with a cheshire cat grin, throwing the royals off balance again.

Fairy Logan walked up last.

“It’s just _Logan_!” Fairy Deadpool shouted. “Like _Madonna_!”

_Wade, if you’re good and stop interrupting, I’ll give you a piece of candy._

Fairy Deadpool suddenly went silent. Disturbed at the sudden lack of chatter, everyone turned to see him begin to crunch down on what sounded like… hard candy?

_I always keep my promises._

Smirking as he watched the others drag Wade away, Fairy Logan shook his head and chuckled. They probably shouldn’t have invited him, but Deadpool did love a party and probably would have just shown up anyway. He smirked at the apprehensive faces of the king and queen. “Relax. I’m sane.” The room seemed to sigh in relief. Raising his wand, Fairy Logan bestowed the last gift of the evening on the prince.   “I bestow resilience to the prince. He could get a hole right through him and he’ll just keep on tickin’.” Logan said with a smirk.  

As slightly horrifying as that thought was, the crowd was reassured that their prince would be tough enough to not fall in battle should war ever arise.

King Howard cleared his throat. “Well, that was… fantastic. Thank you, fairies!” As everyone began to clap, the banquet room doors were flung open with a loud bang, and every window burst, allowing black mist to swirl and invade the suddenly darker hall as glass rained down.  

“ _Well_! So nice to see I’m _just in time_!” Everyone gasped as Fairy Obadiah appeared next to the cradle. “And how is the little prince?” He asked, leaning down to prod the baby’s chubby cheeks. “Looks like quite the party,” he drawled, straightening to cast a glare around the room. All of the other fairies stood alert as Fairy Obadiah began sauntering around the bassinet, idly keeping a hand on it at all times. Even Fairy Deadpool, who’d drawn two very scary looking swor-

“ _KATANAS!_ You _know_ they’re katanas! ”

Fairy Obadiah stopped and glanced at Fairy Deadpool. “Let me guess,” he said, looking back at the king and queen with a laugh. “The red and black psycho over there made your kid screwy just like him.” When the royals didn’t respond, he laughed. “Oh, that’s almost satisfying enough for me to leave without giving _my_ gift. _Almost_.”

“If you’re not going to _bless_ the child, then leave, Obadiah,” Fairy Steve commanded. Fairy Steve had never liked Fairy Obadiah. He was just too calculating for Fairy Steve’s taste. And if Fairy Steve didn’t like someone, neither did Fairy Bucky. And if Fairy Bucky didn’t like someone, well, that was good enough for Fairy Darcy (because, come on, have you _seen_ him? The guy was _hawt_!). And if Fairy Darcy didn’t like someone, Fairy Jane usually followed suit. And if-

“They get the idea, boss.”

_…Thanks Wade._

“Oh, but I _am_ going to bless the child!” Fairy Obadiah sneered. “With a _curse_!” Before any of the other fairies could stop him, Fairy Obadiah raised his arms and the black mists that had settled along the stone floors of the hall rose and covered both him and the baby in a column.

The queen cast Clint an imploring look. He’d been sitting up in one of the crevices at the top of the hall among some statues keeping an eye on things. He’d drawn his bow as soon as Obadiah had appeared, but he hadn’t been able to get a clear shot. Silently moving around the ledges at the tops of the hall, he’d finally had a clear angle when the smoke rose, obstructing is view. He couldn’t take a shot without the possibility of hitting the baby if the evil fairy was holding him. Clint shook his head at the queen with the most distressed look on his face.

Fairy Obadiah’s words rang out from inside the smoke. “Invite me not, the die is cast. The 21st birthday shall be his last. Upon a spindle his finger shall land- his death mourned through out the land!” With an evil laugh the smoke poured back out through the windows and Fairy Obadiah was gone.

“…Why did it rhyme?”

_Curses always have to rhyme, Wade. It’s a rule._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dun dun dun!!! Cliff hanger! Though not much of one since everyone knows how this story ends.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The last of the party guests arrive.

“Hurry brother! We are late!”

“And whose fault is that, hmmmm?”

Prince Thor and Prince Loki of Asgardia walked down the halls of the castle toward the banquet hall. They were late to the party and Thor was anxious, fearing they had missed the festivities. Loki was sauntering behind him at a much more sedate pace, holding the small wrapped present his father had sent him with. From the sound of it, it was a rattle.  

Entering the hall, they noticed two things. The first being the lack of noise. The second being the looks of horror on everyone’s faces.

“Well,” Prince Loki said. “Isn’t this… _festive_.” Seeing the queen’s tears as she held her child though, Loki’s brow raised and his sarcasm dissipated. Queen Maria and his mother Queen Frigga had been good friends before her death. Whoever had made her cry would pay. “What has happened?” He asked, as both he and Thor made their way further into the hall.

The fairies all looked incensed. “Fairy Obadiah…” began Fairy Jane.

“He cursed the baby,” finished Fairy Sam.

“And none of us can do anything about it,” finished Fairy Bucky with a scowl.

“What kind of curse was it?” Prince Thor asked, eyeing his brother speculatively. It wasn’t a secret that the deceased Queen of Asgardia had been able to wield magic. But it was a lesser-known fact that she had passed the gift down to her youngest son.

“It rhymed,” supplied Fairy Deadpool.

“A death curse. On his 21st birthday the prince will prick his finger with a spindle and die,” answered a very defeated looking Fairy Steve.

Prince Loki hummed. “Hmm… and none of you can do anything about it because you are bound by the laws of fairy magic to not interfere as you have all cast your spells of blessings already?”

_Yes, that’s what I’m going with, I- aw, Jezuz, Wade’s got **me** doing it now!_

The fairies all nodded. “Well,” Prince Loki said, “I have yet to give my gift-”

“What’s _that_?” Fairy Deadpool asked, pointing at the small present in Loki’s hands.

Prince Loki tossed the small box over his shoulder and continued, “-and am under no such law.”

 _“_ OOOH! It’s a _rattle!”_ Wade shouted as he waved the discarded box up by his ear.

Walking up to Queen Maria, Loki ignored the crazy fairy and murmured softly, “You and my mother were close once. She spoke of you often. I do this for you, in honor of her.” Taking the baby from her, Prince Loki waved his free hand around, gathering a green energy to it. “I cannot undo the curse laid, however, I can change the prince’s fate…” Glancing at Fairy Deadpool, he quirked a brow. “It rhymed, you said?” Fairy Deadpool nodded, the crayon box and unwrapped rattle each in a hand. Prince Loki sighed, “Very well.” Then he’d have to rhyme as well (“Cause ‘dem’s the rulez!” _Get out of my comment space, Wade!_ ). “Though not in death but sleep shall wait, in blissful slumber for the date, when lover’s kiss shall break the spell and wake you from your sleeping cell.”  

“What’s a sleeping cell?” Fairy Deadpool asked the ceiling.

_Another word for prison. Not my best work, I know, but shut up, Wade, it rhymed!_

Everyone ignored Fairy Deadpool. “It’s the best that I can do,” said Prince Loki apologetically to Queen Maria.

The rest of that evening ended rather quickly. The royals retired shortly after, leaving their guests to the rest of the food. The queen refused to put her baby down and the king was hesitant to leave her side. Hearing a tap at the glass doors leading to their balcony, the queen looked up to see Clint. Rushing over, she let him in.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t get a clear shot,” he said sadly.

The queen sniffled. “It’s not your fault, Clint.”

The king was confused as to why his wife was talking with a strange man who could apparently scale slick stone walls with no footholds or ropes to speak of but the queen assured him she’d explain everything later.

Clint rubbed the back of his neck. “I came to tell you that you may not always see me, but I’ll always be watching over the prince. Even once he falls asleep- I’ll keep an eye on the kingdom and make sure he’s safe. So you can rest easy, knowing that he’ll survive the curse and anything else the evil fairy might try to throw at him later on.”

The queen’s eyes welled with tears and the king nodded in gratitude.

With a nod, Clint was gone.


	6. Chapter 6

The King and Queen were grateful to the Princes of Asgardia, but were still worried. Unable to take his wife’s fear and grief sitting down, King Howard made a proclamation that all spinning wheels were to be banished from the kingdom. Anyone found with a spinning wheel or spindle would be charged with the attempted assassination of a member of the royal family and would be put to death.

“Wow, _harsh_.”

_Wade! Get out of the story! Your part is done!_

The King’s orders were carried out and soon every spindle in the city was burning in the town square. The citizens gathered to watch the bonfire, each feeling a certain amount of hope that this would solve the Prince’s curse. Those who relied on spinning for their livelihood were given large settlements that they could live off of and encouraged to start new businesses- something less murderous to the Prince. Like farming. Who ever heard of an _apple_ killing anyone? No one spoke of the events of that day after that. History books neglected to record it, and the entire event remained unknown to anyone too young to remember it.

Years passed and the Prince grew up in relative peace. He was all the things the fairies had blessed him with- brave, intelligent, handsome… and if he occasionally looked off into space and spoke to invisible people, no one made an issue of it (Fairy Natasha had said she had _mostly_ taken care of it- and she had. _Mostly_.). It wasn’t too frequent so the King and Queen just ignored it (and ordered everyone else to ignore it also). He-

“Ignore what?”

_Nothing, Prince Anthony._

“My friends call me Tony.”

_Ok, Tony. Don’t worry about it- keep doing what you were doing._

_…See what I mean?_

The castle was always full of Prince Tony’s inventions, and poor Jarvis, his loyal servant, was forever tripping over them. Still, he never seemed to mind- after all, he knew Tony couldn’t help but do science- it was one of his gifts. It just happened to manifest itself in the form of invention. Jarvis loved Tony like a son and Tony loved him- Tony even named one of his inventions after Jarvis. He’d wired it into another invention of his- an iron suit. Tony had learned in his studies on the kingdom’s history that it had once been known for its beautiful fabrics. Learning that a curse had been put on the land preventing the people from using spindles, Tony had sought out other ways to reclaim his kingdom’s former prestige. So he’d built a suit out of iron. It didn’t fly. _Yet_. But Tony had plans.

Years passed like this and the kingdom got used to seeing smoke coming from out of various windows of the castle. Prince Tony’s inventions didn’t always work out. _But_ , they reasoned, that was all part of inventing. Sometimes you create the wheel, and sometimes that wheel blows up. The kingdom was actually full of very useful inventions by the prince. He’d created a better wagon for pulling their crops, and better tools for building things. He’d even created a better way to light and heat homes! The people were always happy and grateful that their kingdom had such great fortune (even if their clothing tended to rip because it was so worn…).

However, Prince Tony was quickly approaching adulthood, and with each passing year, the kingdom became more and more tense. They’d willingly burned their spindles, but that didn’t mean that their prince would be able to escape his cursed fate. That’s sort of what curses do- they get you no matter how hard you try to avoid them. In desperation, the King and Queen began parading women in front of their son, hoping he’d find his one true love that could break the curse immediately. What they didn’t count on was how much Tony liked women.

“I _really_ like women.”

_Yes, Tony. We know you do._

The Queen sighed as she watched from her private balcony while yet _another_ noble’s daughter snuck out of the castle and some ungodly hour. The woman looked thoroughly debauched. Not that she was judging. Tony took after his father, it seemed… and if there was one thing about Howard Stark, it was that he was charming to a fault. But Howard had stopped after he’d met her, and she was certain that Tony would be the same. He just needed to find the one person who would cause him to stop looking…

“He takes after his father…” she mumbled quietly.

Casually leaning against the wall, Clint crossed his arms and watched the woman leave with a smirk. “ _Indeed_.” Clint hadn’t made a sound as he’d leapt up onto the balcony’s edge, but it had been nearly 21 years, and the Queen had gotten quite good at sensing his presence.

“I hadn’t intended for him to be such a womanizer, but we’d hoped he’d find his true love to break…”

Clint nodded in understanding at the Queen as she let her sentence trail off. She found it hard to even vocalize what they both knew was coming. With each passing day she grew more and more tense- they all did. Every citizen in the kingdom old enough to remember the day of the Prince’s birth seemed to be on edge, counting down the days until the tragedy was supposed to happen.

The King had sent for every wise man/woman, scientist, magician, and magical creature in the kingdom to see if they could come up with a way to break the curse. But all had failed. The Queen had had a sinking suspicion that they would, but she’d let her husband try, all the same. She feared nothing could save her son from his fate. Loki had done what he could, but who was to say that Tony would find his love before he fell to the curse? What if he _never_ found them?

Clint watched as the Queen’s shoulders sank. “If just one of them could do more than just catch his eye and actually hold his _attention_ …” she said sadly. “But I’m afraid they’re all a bit too silly or dumb for him. Tony needs a woman who can not only keep up with his intellect, but also manage the kingdom around him. My son is very capable of many things… but managing his own life does not seem to be one of them. He’d probably forget his own birthday if not for Jarvis…”

Clint cleared his throat. “Actually, didn’t he do that last year?”

Queen Maria put her head in her hands. “Yes, yes he did.”

Clint shrugged. “He’s a little absent minded, but he’s brilliant, so it evens out, right? I notice he’s made advances with that iron suit of his. I saw Fairy Darcy and Jarvis dodging out of the way of the latest upgrades to it.”

The Queen smiled. “He has. Fairy Darcy has been visiting a lot of late.”

“She likes Jarvis.”

The Queen hadn’t known that, but smiled and nodded. She was happy Jarvis had found someone. Now if only her son could.

*

The Prince’s birthday was less than a week away, and the Queen began to notice that the castle’s fairy population had risen from one (Fairy Darcy had effectively moved in and taken over a small corner in Tony’s workshop. She’d said something about assisting… The Queen figured Darcy was helping Jarvis- Lord knew he could use the help sometimes) and had jumped to twelve. Suddenly, the castle seemed to be _full_ of fairies.

“The fairies have all moved in,” Clint said one evening, as he settled himself next to the Queen at her writing desk.

Maria didn’t bother to look up from her journal. “Yes, they have. Fairy Steve said they would do their best to ward the castle against Fairy Obadiah should he come back… They’ve even brought a powerful mage with them- Stephen Strange.”

Clint nodded. “I’ve seen him. He-”

“Sweetheart,” called King Howard, as he walked into the room. “Who are you with?”

Maria smiled. “No one, Howard.”

It was true- the Queen was alone in the room.

Clint didn’t have an issue with the King. In fact, he liked him. But his friendship was with the Queen, so he usually ducked out of sight when the King came around. In fact, the man hadn’t seen Clint since that time after the Prince’s introduction feast. Walking quietly along the tops of the castle walls, Clint went to find Fairy Steve, certain he and Fairy Bucky had already come up with a defense strategy.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meet Virginia.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I first started this story over a year and a half ago and only JUST now noticed that I didn't give Jarvis any lines... oops.

On the eve of the Prince’s birthday, the palace staff went on with their duties as if nothing was wrong. The fairies made themselves scarce. Mostly. Fairy Darcy was a regular fixture in the castle by now, so she stuck close to Tony with Jarvis.

“… Hey, Darce?” Tony asked.

“Yeah?”

“…Why are you wearing a colander on your head?” Darcy was indeed wearing a metal colander on her head that she’d stolen out of the kitchens. “And for that matter, why are you wearing the bedding?” Darcy was also wearing a few pillows she’d tied to her torso and back. Jarvis had helped her (he hadn’t thought it would help, but he’d tied the pillows in place without complaint all the same).

“Because they don’t make armor my size and I couldn’t find a helmet that would fit over my glasses.”

“Oh, why didn’t you say so? I could make you some. That’d be easy.”

Darcy smiled a sad smile as the Prince started pulling out drafting paper and a tape measure, asking her about color preferences and if she’d like a cat image on it. He hadn’t even bothered to ask her _why_ she felt the need to wear armor. They’d blessed him with so much intelligence that they’d forgotten to make him a little more attentive to the situation at hand. _Common sense_. _They’d forgotten to give him_ _common sense_ … She sort of liked that about him though. Taking a deep breath she willed herself to focus. If they failed in protecting him tomorrow night, he’d never get the chance to make anything again.  

*

Pepper was the daughter of a merchant. She’d seen Prince Tony many times over the years- opening orphanages with his mother, riding through the streets during holidays and parades, and even over the last several years at his birthday- the King and Queen had invited all of the unmarried young women of the kingdom. Though she knew she’d never be considered worthy enough to be paraded in front of the Prince as a possible marriage option, that thought didn’t stop her from attending. Though she kept to the corners and edges. Royal birthdays were a sight to see. It also didn’t stop her from thinking about him. Well, mainly from thinking about how well she could manage his life for him. The man was a bit of a mess. Yes, he was beyond intelligent and basically a genius. But she was fairly certain he couldn’t tie his own shoes without getting distracted.

On this particular day, she was delivering an order to the palace for tomorrow’s big event. Normally she’d never encounter anyone related to the royal family or anyone important at all for that matter, but today was a bit different. The fairies from the lands were there. Most of them seemed to be standing at the alert, eyeing each person who came through the gates with a laser focus that would have been intimidating. If, that is, she wasn’t Pepper Potts. Pepper was not someone who scared easily. Yes, she found some situations unnerving, but she never let it show. She’d broken into the family business despite her gender and she essentially ran it in all but name. She went toe to toe with some of the biggest business men in the kingdom and she’d be damned if she let a bunch of people in tights and glitter scare her. But what were they doing here?

Pepper knew the 21st birthday of the Prince was a big deal, but why were all twelve of the fairies who’d blessed him at his birth here? Well, whatever the reason, she still had work to do. Filing the question at the back of her mind, she made her way to the intake area of the palace. She supervised as each crate was pulled off of the cart by palace staff, telling each person where each crate was designated to go.

“The last one is meant for the kitchens,” she said, as she checked it off the long list she’d been holding. “It’s full of the spices you ordered for one of the main courses- the chef knows which one.” With a nod, the staff members lifted the crate and carried it off, disappearing into one of the doorways. “Can you sign for the delivery?” Pepper asked another staff member.

“No miss,” they said, “but the foreman just went inside-”

“I’ll escort her,” came a voice behind her.

Pepper turned around to see Fairy Bucky approaching. The servant bowed out and left to finish their duties. Fairy Bucky held out his hand to her.

“James Buchanan Barnes,” he said, flashing a white smile at her. “Bucky to my friends.”

Pepper had heard he’d been the one to bless the prince with charm. She could see why. “Virginia Potts,” she said back, shaking his hand. “Pepper to mine.”

He smiled at her again. “What do you need signed, Pepper?”

Pepper pursed her lips together to suppress a smile at his assumption that they were friends. She could do worse, she supposed- being friends with a fairy of the kingdom- especially one of the more intimidating ones. At least he didn’t wear glitter, she told herself. That stuff just doesn’t come off. She’d have been washing her hand for _weeks_. “I have the confirmation of delivery forms here. They’re how we’ll get paid later for our services. I just need someone with authority to sign them.”

Bucky nodded. “The foreman just went off with Steve. I’m fairly certain I know where they are. Come on, I’ll walk you.”

“Security must be pretty high,” she said conversationally as she followed him into the palace.

“Why do you say that?” He was trying to sound casual, but Pepper had caught him tense slightly before he seemed to catch himself.

“I’m probably the least dangerous person in the kingdom. Well, physically, at least. And you’re escorting me through the areas that I’ve been allowed in before without an escort.”

Bucky navigated around her question with an ease Pepper admired. “ _Physically_?”

Pepper nodded. “Obviously in a fight you would win. But business wise, I could destroy you.”

Bucky smiled. He liked her. Before he could respond, they turned the corner and came face to face with Fairy Darcy and Prince Tony (who was too engrossed in his blueprints to notice them).

“It’s just Tony,” Tony said in response to no one.

Bucky cleared his throat.   “Tony.”

“ _Hmm_? Oh, hi Buck. Darce and I were just- who’s this?” He asked, eyes now zeroing in on Pepper in a very appreciative way.  

Darcy rolled her eyes. Tony had never been very subtle… another thing they’d neglected to bless him with. You’d think he would have developed some of the missing traits on his own, but clearly he took more after his father than mother. “This is Pepper Potts, her family has a large imports/exports business. She usually delivers a lot of the supplies for your birthday.”

“Hello, Darcy,” Pepper smiled. “It’s nice to see you again.”

“You too,” Darcy said with a smile in return.

“Wait, you two know each other?” Bucky asked.

“Pepper is the only one who can get me the secret ingredients for my baking,” Darcy answered.

Pepper noticed that Tony was eyeing her. As flattered as she was (after all, he _was_ attractive, and a _prince_ ), she knew she didn’t just want to be a one-night stand with him. So instead of flirting, she bowed her head in respect and was about to say hello when a very stressed looking man came running after the prince.

“ _Your highness_! I really must insist that you look at these documents! _Please_ , your highness.” The servant handed them to Tony who didn’t even bother to look at them before handing them to Bucky.

Bucky made a face and handed them to Darcy, who in turn sighed and looked at Pepper.

Pepper shrugged and offered out her hand, taking them when Darcy handed them off. Looking them over, Pepper pulled out a pen and circled several parts before flipping the page and reading the rest of the document.   “Assuming you received the shipment of materials that arrived from the kingdom in the South, everything looks to be in order. Initial here and here,” she said, indicating the various places she’d circled. When Tony finished, she flipped the page for him. “And sign here.” Once he had, she straightened the document and handed it back to the servant with a smile. The servant gave her a grateful smile and rushed off. The poor man had probably been trying to get the prince to sign that for a week, judging by the date.

Turning back to the group, she noticed they were all looking at her again. Darcy looked smug, Bucky looked at her with new respect, and the prince was still looking at her with appreciation. And that’s when Pepper noticed it.

“Uh, your highness?” she asked.

“Tony- my friends and beautiful women call me Tony,” he said to her with a grin.

Pepper paused. _Of course they did_. “…Uh, Tony?”

Darcy and Bucky each sidestepped down the corridor, giving them some space.

“Yes, Pepper?”

“Your shoes are untied,” she said, pointing at his feet with her pen.

Tony looked down. “Huh. So they are.”

Darcy facepalmed and looked at Bucky. “I thought you made him _charming_?” she mumbled at him.

“I made him a _flirt_. There’s a difference. Natalia gave him charisma,” he said, tilting his head to the side where Fairy Natasha had suddenly appeared.

Fairy Natasha shrugged. “Awkward can be charming too.”

The three fairies were joined by Fairy Steve and the foreman and all watched as Pepper helped Tony straighten himself. After a few minutes, the woman stepped back and nodded. He wasn’t coronation ready, but he was presentable enough. With a polite goodbye, Pepper walked toward the foreman, leaving Tony to stare after her.

“Could you sign these for me please? The delivery has been made. Fairy Bucky witnessed it.”

The foreman nodded and signed in the appropriate places before handing the forms back. Once everything was in order, Bucky offered to walk her back out to her horse and cart.

Tony watched as Pepper left with Bucky. _Huh_. It was rare that a woman more or less ignored him. Yes, she’d spoken to him and had acknowledged his existence, but she’d ignored his blatant interest. That was new. New was _good_. New wasn’t boring.   “She seems… _capable_ ,” he said, trying and failing to sound nonchalant.  

“She is,” Darcy nodded, appearing as if she didn’t know what Tony was up to.

“Is she married?”

Darcy hid a smile, pretending to sound bored. “Does she need to be to run her family’s business?”

Tony looked back down at his blueprints “No of course not…”

“Why do you ask Tony?”

“No reason…”

Darcy hid her smile. Pepper must have really made an impression if he wasn’t running after her immediately. It looked like he might actually care if he impressed her in more than his usual flashy way. Hopefully he made a move fast. Like _tonight_ fast.

*

Tony _did_ end up making a move that night. After Pepper had left, he’d gone back to his workshop and had worked for several hours on the latest design of his Iron Man suit. The first time it had been put together, Jarvis had asked Tony why he’d built an iron man and what it was doing in the study. The name had more or less stuck. With Darcy and Jarvis’s help, he’d strapped himself into it that night and had flown- yes, _flown_ (that was the latest upgrade) to Pepper’s house. Darcy would never cease to be amazed at the amount of his genius. They’d neglected to bless him with flight, so he gave it to himself. Because of course he did- no one told Tony he couldn’t do anything.

Darcy watched from the workshop balcony as Tony flew off in a flash of red and gold. Of course he’d made it red and gold- he loved those colors- very flashy. Fairy Jane stood next to her, watching his progress.

“I hope he doesn’t stick his foot in his mouth… and hopefully his shoes are tied this time,” Darcy said.

“Don’t worry, I gave him an extra sprinkle of charm before he flew off.”

Both Fairy Jane and Fairy Darcy jumped at the unexpected third voice. “Jeeeez Nat! You about scared us to death! _Wear a_ _bell_!!!” wheezed Darcy, her hand clutching her heart.

“But then we wouldn’t get to see your shocked expression,” Fairy Bucky said from Darcy’s left.

Darcy jumped out of her shoes. “Where did _you_ come from?”

Bucky smirked but didn’t answer her.  

“I hate you both,” Darcy said after a few seconds.

Natasha gave a small catlike smile. “And if we teach you?”

Darcy quickly changed her tune. “Did I say hate? I’m sorry, obviously I mispronounced _love_.”

*

Tony was counting streets and houses as he flew, looking for the right house. It’s not that he was unfamiliar with his kingdom, but everything just looked so different from the air. This was something he could get used to.

Finally spotting her house, Tony considered landing. On the one hand, he could just fly from window to window until he spotted her. On the other, he might freak everyone in the house out, and as much of a show off as he might be (and let’s be honest, Prince Anthony Stark _was_ a slight show off… if by slight we mean monumental), he didn’t want to scare Pepper or any of the other members of her family. So as he made his approach, he looked for a suitable place to land, which just so happened to be in a courtyard.

Said courtyard was actually the one that Pepper had a nice view of from her balcony. She’d always thought it a little cheesy, but her parents had hoped that the little balcony outside of her window would inspire romantic notions in the young men of the town. And it did. But as Pepper was so quick to point out, tiny balconies didn’t work out so well for Romeo and Juliet, so she usually refused to give much attention to any boy who snuck around in bushes watching her like a creepy spider before throwing rocks at her window.

Tonight though, when she heard a noise in the courtyard, she looked. It wasn’t a noise she’d ever heard before. It was a… a… well, she didn’t know _what_ it was, but she was going to find out. Opening her balcony doors, she watched with wide eyes as a huge suit of armor _landed_ \- _yes_ , _landed_. The faceplate lifted and Pepper found herself staring down at Prince Tony.

“Huh…” Pepper thought to herself, “He may be a bit disheveled, but then, he’s a genius- I suppose I can’t expect him to be completely put together… he could use an assistant.”

“Hi,” Tony said, hesitantly smiling up at her.

Pepper couldn’t help but be slightly charmed. Here was the Prince of the country, having just flown to her house, and he was sounding almost… _shy_.

“Hi,” she said back.

“So… I was wondering…” Tony said, standing rather still (he wanted to fidget, but being in an iron suit made that kind of hard… next time he’d install some sort of mechanism to help him move more easily). “Um…”

Pepper waited patiently for him to speak. Seeing he may need a bit of help to build up to whatever he’d thought was so important to say that he’d actually _flown_ to her, Pepper said the first thing she could think of. “I like your suit.”

Tony looked up at her hopefully. “You do?”

Pepper nodded. “Uh huh, it’s very… shiny.”

“Thanks, I-” Feeling eyes on him, Tony glanced at the windows on the ground floor to his right and spotted several people noses pressed to the glass, staring at him. “Uhhh…” Looking back up at Pepper, he took a chance. “You know what, this would be a lot easier face to face. Can I come up?”

“Um,” Pepper hesitated. It’s not that she didn’t trust the honor of the crown prince, but it was late, and appearances were appearances after all.

“No, not _in_ ,” Tony said, quickly correcting himself, seeing her dilemma. “I mean _up_.”

Seeing she wasn’t understanding him, Tony engaged his flight systems and slowly lifted himself to be eye level with her. “Hi.”

“Hi.”

“So, as I was saying, I was wondering if you were coming to my birthday tomorrow.”

Pepper nodded, “I was planning on it… my parents think it will be a good opportunity to… _mingle_.” They’d been less than subtle in telling her they wanted grandchildren.

“Mingle? _Mingle_? Who do they want you mingling _with_? Because, well, you could mingle with _me_. I’m great at mingling. We could mingle _together_ … that is, if you want to…”

Pepper smiled. She had no intention of being another notch on the prince’s bedpost, but she found him likable. And as odd as it was, she wanted to help him keep his life in order. There were worse things she could do than be an assistant to a genius prince. “I’d like that.”

“ _Really_?!? I mean… _great_ , sounds good, sounds great. I’ll pick you up. Can I pick you up? I’d like to pick you up.”

Pepper shook her head. The rumors were going to be flying (haha, _flying_ ) around as it was. Lord only knew how this would effect their business- some people might buy more from them, since it appeared that even Prince Tony couldn’t wait to see them. But others might avoid them- anyone with an eligible daughter with their heart set on marrying a prince… especially the ones who’d already had a chance but had failed to bring the prince calling for a second time. Pepper really wasn’t interested in getting hate mail. “How about I meet you there? I usually ride with my parents- they like fussing before we get out.”

Tony nodded. He could buy that. Parents liked to fuss. “Ok, I’ll see you there. Save me a dance?”

Pepper smiled and nodded.

“Save me _all_ the dances?”

Pepper rolled her eyes.

“Ok, we’ll play it by ear then,” Tony nodded.

“Goodnight, Tony.”

“Goodnight, Pepper.”

Pepper waved at him as he flew off. Looking down, she noticed that the entire household was leaning out of the downstairs window, watching the scene with interest. No wonder he’d wanted to come up. Pepper raised a brow at them and waited. When they did nothing but stare at her in silence, she rolled her eyes. “ _Yes_ , I’m going to the ball and _yes_ , I’ll see him there, and _yes_ , I’ll be dancing with him. And _no_ , I’m _not_ going to stay the night.”

Satisfied with her answers, everyone ducked back inside the house. Pepper looked out at the sky again once they were gone. She could just see the light of the prince’s suit twinkling back toward the castle. Smiling to herself, she went back inside and shut the window.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Party prep!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a short chapter, but I think it's got my favorite scene in it- Tony's prep for the party.

Tony was nervous. His birthday was a big deal, sure, but this was a special night for another reason. Pepper. _Pepper_ was coming to his birthday. He liked her. She was sharp and capable and pretty and seemed nice.

Darcy liked her. Bucky seemed to respect her. Natasha didn’t raise an eyebrow at the mention of her name. Steve said she was tough.

Even if he’d never said it aloud, the endorsements of the fairies actually meant a lot to Tony- they were more than just the fairies of the kingdom- they were his friends. They’d never liked any of the women he’d messed around with before. But they all liked Pepper.

Tony spent the day getting ready for the party. Normally he had to be dragged away from a project, but today he was all about getting ready. He’d bathed (twice), shined his shoes (“Tony, stop, they’re so shiny you’ll blind her if anything brighter than a single candle reflects off of ‘em.” “But Buck, she likes shiny things.” “… That half sounds like an insult, pal…”), combed his hair (“Tony, stop- your hair is fine.” “But Darcy, what if it falls out of place?” “What if it _falls_ _out_ from you combing it so much?”), and tried to put on cologne (Natasha had taken the bottle away from him and thrown it over her shoulder right out the window. “Too much. You do not need it.” “…Ok. Thanks Nat.” “You are welcome. Stop fussing. She will appreciate your effort. Do not worry, she does not think less of you for the way you met.” “… _Thanks_ Nat.”).

The rest of the palace spent the day getting ready for the party too. Though their preparations were actually much more productive than Tony’s, they were no less panic-stricken. The curse was at the forefront of their minds. What if Prince Tony fell into that sleep and never woke up? Loki’s fix had said lover’s kiss… did that mean any of his previous lovers? Or a true love sort of thing? But he’d never met his true love. What if he _never_ met them? Loki’s spell was a _fix_ , not a guarantee.

The king and queen tried to act like nothing was wrong, putting on a brave face for their son. Unfortunately for them they were both very bad liars. Fortunately for them, Tony wasn’t very observant- his obsession for getting ready to see Pepper clouding everything.

Pepper spent the afternoon getting ready. She’d spent the morning making some changes to her gown. In fact, she’d completely changed her gown.

Far off in another part of the land, another was also getting ready for the party. With a sinister laugh they gathered their things, spinning wheel shining brightly in the corner behind them.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Party time!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here, have a long chapter.

Clint crouched watching the ballroom from above. The party was in full swing and all of those too young to remember the day of the Prince’s birth were having a wonderful time. Everyone else was looking nervous. The Asgardian princes were in attendance- on _time_ this evening- speaking with the king and queen, never quite too far from the prince either.   Clint’s lips twitched in the faintest hint of a smile as he watched Tony trip over his own tongue as Pepper walked in. _Huh_ , she’d matched her gown to the Iron Man suit. Well if that wasn’t a statement, Clint didn’t know what was. Clint watched with a smirk as Tony b-lined for her and proceeded to take up all her time. Good for him. Clint dared to hope in his most inner heart of hearts for a happy ending. All the fairies had been working around the clock to try to think up a way to save Tony. Strange said he had something that might work, but he couldn’t be sure. But ‘might work’ was better than nothing. So they’d all agreed to his plan.

As the party progressed the fairies grew tenser and tenser. Even Fairy Deadpool was looking pretty grim. Not that you could really tell- the mask sort of covered everything.

“I emote with my eyes.”

_…Sure you do, Wade._

Not that Tony noticed. All he noticed was Pepper.

Stephen Strange and Prince Loki were too busy to be tense. They’d enlisted the help of an elf that lived on the palace grounds and now all three of them were busy working on something that might save the prince.

Bruce adjusted a large seven foot mirror leaning against a far wall as nonchalantly as he could. This was the last one- they’d placed these all over the castle. With a nod to Prince Loki he adjusted his glasses. With any luck, their plan would work. Strange’s idea to open up a portal to suck Fairy Obadiah into an empty dimention was brilliant. Provided they didn’t suck anyone else in with him. And provided he didn’t kill anyone on his way in. And provided he didn’t get the prince before they could zap him. And-

Fairy Deadpool put a hand on Bruce’s shoulder. “Chill Mark. You’re gonna sprain your brain.”

Bruce took a deep breath. He’d stopped questioning how the fairy always knew what he was thinking and why he was always calling him different names years ago when they’d first met. “Thanks, Wade.”

Wade made shot a finger gun at him. “I got you, _babe_.”

Prince Loki watched the exchange with a quirked brow before going back to scanning the crowd. “He’s certifiably mad, isn’t he?” He asked Strange.

Stephen shook his head as he too scanned. “The fairy actually sees more than you or I. His gift allows him to view multiple universes the way one would view mirrors reflecting other mirrors in a hall. Unfortunately, his sight is rather scattered- he sees fragments of various universes irrevocably mixed up. As if the mirrors were shattered and spread about in a large heap upon the floor.”

Loki paused. “…You mean to tell me that he is not insane but a _gifted_ seer?”

Stephen shrugged. “The world often thinks that those who can see more than what is in front of them are insane.”

“ _Huh_.” Loki was intrigued. “So when he appears to be speaking to no one, he’s really…”

“Speaking to a being in an alternate universe that is reading about us? Possibly.”

“But that would make us a story in a book.”

Stephen shrugged again. “I once met a man that traveled in a blue box who told me ‘We’re all stories in the end.’ Perhaps he was right.”

“Oh!” Fairy Deadpool shouted at them. “I _LOVE_ that show! I like Twelve- he’s _dreamy_!”

Loki raised a brow at Strange.

“Of course, one can be a gifted seer _and_ quite mad at the same time,” Stephen conceded.

*

Tony was dancing with Pepper. She’d asked him how he made the Iron Man suit fly. Tony had to go on tangents to explain things to her but for the most part she was actually keeping up with him and understanding what he was telling her- like _really_ understanding. Not just nodding along and giggling like all the others. She asked him questions. _Real_ questions. After a few minutes though, Tony stopped explaining as he was getting to the suit’s defenses.

“You know what, I can show you better than I can tell you.”

Pepper raised her brows. “I’d rather you didn’t blow anything up at your party. The fairies are here to assist, but I don’t think they’d be particularly pleased if you started a fire. Plus, they’ve been watching you like hawks all night. I doubt they’d let you out of their sight long enough to even try.”

“I wasn’t planning on starting a _large_ fire, and I hadn’t really noticed. But that’s ok, we can solve this problem.” Tony started to lead Pepper through the crowd, twirling her here and there to avoid other dancing couples.

“What problem?” she asked, impressed he hadn’t stepped on her toes once.

“The problem of how to slip out of here unnoticed,” he said matter-of-factly.

“And just how do you intend to do that? You’re the crowned prince and this is _your_ birthday party.”

Tony flashed her a smile. “Like _this_.”

And with that Tony danced them right through a doorway and down a hall before breaking from the dance and pulling Pepper down the hall by her hand. Pepper had to admit- it was a pretty smooth move. She hadn’t even noticed they were anywhere near a door. But they didn’t get out completely unnoticed.   Someone smiled as he planned his next move.

*

“The gauntlet has what I call a repulsor in it. It’s what helps me stabilize my flight but it can also be a weapon,” Tony explained, showing Pepper the gauntlet. “I’ve wired them to work independently from the suit.”

Pepper weighed it in her hands. “It doesn’t seem like it’d be practical for long battles- it’s rather heavy. You’d have to keep your arms constantly raised without the momentum that swinging a sword gives you.”

Tony nodded, proud for some reason that she was thinking about practicality. “This model is, but the next model will be lighter. I’m refining as I go.”

Pepper seemed to be thinking it over, “Where are you sourcing your metals from?”

“So far just the kingdom’s mines. Why?”

Pepper nodded, she’d figured that’s what he’d say. “I’ve got an in with the kingdom of Wakanda. They have the best mines around- their metals are unbelievably strong but also rather lightweight. They might be what you’re looking for without jeopardizing the integrity of the suit by going thinner. What’s your energy source? I-”

Pepper kept talking. Tony was in awe. And possibly in love. And that’s when he heard something. “Pepper, do you hear that?”

Pepper stopped and looked up from where she was examining the gauntlet. “Hear wha-”

Tony put his hand up and a finger to his lips, pointing in the direction of the sound. “Listen,” he whispered.

Pepper strained her ears. She _did_ hear something. Some sort of… ticking? No, that wasn’t quite right. A… clicking? She nodded. “I’ve never heard that noise before,” she admitted.

“Me neither,” Tony whispered back. “Let’s go check it out.”

“Tony, shouldn’t we just let the guards do it?”

Tony was already too fascinated to think it over. He was walking toward the sound before she’d even finished her suggestion. Still holding the gauntlet, Pepper followed him. If the man couldn’t even remember to tie his shoes, he probably shouldn’t be left alone to seek out a strange noise when he had that intrigued look on his face. Pepper was willing to bet that when Tony got curious about something he stopped paying attention to the world around him. She was going strictly as supervision, she told herself. Not because the entire wing suddenly seemed to grow darker and sinister and she didn’t want to be left alone. Nope, that wasn’t it at all.

Following behind Tony, she handed him the gauntlet when he reached his left hand back to her. She watched as Tony stuck it on his right hand then reached back again at her, and blushed when she realized he’d actually wanted her hand, not his gauntlet, though he’d accepted that without thought. Hand in hand, the two of them crept down the hallway deeper into the castle. They followed the sound to a corridor that Tony had no memory of.

“…”

“What’s wrong?” Pepper whispered as they stopped in front of the corridor.

“… I’ve never been down this passage…” Tony whispered back.

Pepper’s brow furrowed. He’d lived here for the past 21 years and he’d never been down this passage that was so close to his rooms? “Why not?”

“I’ve never noticed it before… I know I can be a bit unobservant at times, but it’s been 21 years… you’d think I’d have noticed this before now.”

Pepper’s internal warning systems were starting to go off. Something wasn’t right here. She squeezed his hand. “Maybe we should go back.”

Tony was about to agree with her when he heard humming. It was such a _nice_ sound… squeezing her hand back, he wordlessly tugged her along after him as he started walking down the new hall. Pepper shivered. The hall seemed to grow darker and colder with each step they took, but Tony looked like he was sweating- as if the darkness was so oppressive that he was straining under it. She understood how he felt- she was feeling pretty tense and strained herself. Whatever was at the end of the hall, she decided they didn’t need to see it. But before she could turn around and forcibly drag Tony away, they came to a doorway that she’d swear wasn’t there a moment before.

Tony paused and peaked around the corner. He was confused by what he saw. There was a man in a cloak standing by a… machine. It was essentially a wooden wheel on legs with a large spike on it. The wheel was spinning and every so often the man would propel it with his hand to keep it in motion.

Pepper watched as a green light coming from inside the room cast shadows over Tony’s face. Whatever he was looking at had him bewitched. She tried to pull him back with her down the hall but he wouldn’t budge. He was stronger than he looked- probably from all of that metal work and fabricating. Taking both of his hands she tugged again.

Somewhere in the back of Tony’s mind, he registered that Pepper was trying to get his attention, but he just couldn’t seem to give it to her.

“Happy birthday, your highness,” the man said.

Tony walked forward into the room, leaving Pepper to hold the gauntlet as it slipped from his hand after she started tugging harder. She remained hidden in the hall from the stranger. “Thanks. What’s that?” he asked, walking up to the contraption.

“Your birthday present,” the man smiled.

Tony looked at it enthralled.  

“Go ahead, sport,” the man encouraged. “ _Touch_ it.”

Tony stumbled forward. His only thoughts were of his sudden desperation to touch the needle at the top.

Pepper watched in horror as Tony reached for the spike. Whoever this man was, he was going to hurt the prince. She didn’t know why or how, but she just _knew_ that Tony was about to be in very deep trouble. Looking down at the gauntlet, she slipped it on.

Tony’s finger was so close, just a tiny movement and he’d be able to touch the sharp point of the machine. It was so _shiny_. His suit was shiny. Pepper liked shiny things- Pepper liked his sui- Just then Tony heard a noise- _his_ noise. It was his repulsor from the gauntlet. _Pepper_! Where was Pepper? Had he _seriously_ just _left_ her in the hall? What the hell was _this thing_ in front of him? And what was he doing?

“ _Tony_!”

Tony broke completely out of his haze. _Pepper_. Pepper was calling him. Turning, Tony saw her wearing his gauntlet standing in the doorway with her feet braced apart.

“Tony get down!” she shouted as she fired at the stranger.

The man sidestepped the blast and with a flick of his wrist the gauntlet went flying off of Pepper’s hand.  Tony was up and running to her but the man moved and blocked his path.

“Now now,” he said, “is that any way to thank me?”

Before anyone could make another move there was a ‘twang’ noise followed by a woosh of air. And then a roar of outrage.

“Tony! Run!”   Clint shouted as he notched another arrow in his bow and shot at Fairy Obadia again.

Pepper was scrambling for the gauntlet and had just grabbed it when Tony snagged her around the waist and propelled her out of the room with him. There was a bright burst of light behind them but they didn’t dare look. Blasts of green energy bolts started flying at them. Shouts echoed off of the stone walls and the sound of their running was joined by more footfalls. Suddenly Fairy Bucky was there with them, blocking the blasts with his metal arm. “Get to Strange!” he shouted at them above the noise. “I’ll cover you!”

Tony didn’t know what Stephen Strange could do, but he wasn’t going to argue. When they got back to the main hallway they’d come from Pepper tried to go back the way they’d come from past his rooms. Tony jerked her in the opposite direction. They could cut through the smaller dining hall that he and his parents took their meals at. “Trust me! Short cut!” he shouted breathlessly as they ran hand in hand. The sounds of a battle were still raging behind them. Tony took a left and led them into the dining room and almost ran straight into a whole stack of those wooden machines. “ _What the hell are these things_?!?!” he shouted as they slid to a halt, each holding the other back from the sharp points.

“Your _doom_!” shouted the stranger as he advanced on them.

Pepper and Tony turned around in horror as they saw him. How had he caught up with them so _fast_?!? Where was _Bucky_??? He’d been frightening to Pepper before, but now as he stood there with arrows sticking out of him, he was _horrifying_ \- look like some deranged walking corpse. Tony shoved Pepper behind him and took the gauntlet she offered and pointed it at the stranger.

“Come now, Tony. Is that anyway to treat your fairy godfather?” the man sneered.

“You’re no fairy of mine,” Tony bit back. The Fairies were his _friends_. Even the crazy one and the grumpy pirate. This weirdo was just a psycho.

“Oh, but I _am_. My name is Fairy Obadiah, and I blessed you when you were born too. I blessed you to _death_. You’re going to prick your finger on one of these spindles and you’re going to die.”

Pepper gasped into Tony’s back. It all made sense now. She knew what these _things_ were- _spinning wheels_! Other kingdoms had them, though she’d never seen one herself. They were used in the process of making cloth- something this kingdom didn’t produce. Pepper had never been able to figure out why. It just hadn’t made any sense economically. Fabric was such a basic commodity- everyone needed it. It had never made sense to her that they always bought it from other lands instead of making it themselves. The King and Queen must have outlawed spinning wheels after Obadiah put the curse on Tony.

Tony shook his head. _It wasn’t true_.

Obadiah nodded. “Why fight it, Tony? You can’t- not really. I cursed you. You can’t fight a curse.” Obadiah started advancing on them, backing them up into the spindles. Tony fired the repulsor at him but the fairy merely waved his arms and his shots glanced off.

“Tony! Pepper! Get down!” Tony grabbed Pepper and forced her to the ground just as Steve’s shield came flying over their heads from behind.  

That’s when all hell broke loose. The rest of the fairies stormed the dining hall from opposite directions. Logan was slicing the spinning wheels to pieces on the other side of the pile while Jane, Darcy, and Erik were furiously throwing the spindles into what looked like black swirling holes. Natasha, Bucky, and Steve had leapt clear over the piles of spindles and were engaging in combat with Obadiah. Tony couldn’t see what the others were doing because Fairies Agent and Rhodey were standing over them, ready to defend them from an attack.

* 

Thor, Bruce, Loki, and Strange ran down the hallway as quickly as they could. They’d been searching for the prince with the others after he’d disappeared when Bucky had come running by, shouting at them all to grab a mirror and follow him. Thor had grabbed the nearest one and had charged after him, the large mirror didn’t even look like it was slowing him down. Bruce managed to keep up. He wasn’t the most athletic of the bunch, but he _did_ know how to breathe properly. Loki and Strange were right behind them, already muttering and casting. They’d lost Bucky pretty quickly (the fairy was FAST) but they didn’t need to worry- they just followed the sounds of battle.

Coming upon the private dining hall, Thor planted the mirror on the ground. Thor held it with Bruce instead of joining in the battle, knowing it would take the both of them to hold it once Strange and his brother finished their incantations.

*

Tony watched as Bucky, Steve, and Nat were trying to get corner Obadiah. They were backing him up toward the hall where Prince Thor and someone else were holding a large mirror that looked like it was… _rippling_. Whatever it was doing, Tony realized immediately that they were trying to trap Obadiah in the mirror. He also realized that it wasn’t going to work- Obadiah wasn’t being _herded_ toward the mirror, he was _leading_ _them_ toward it! He was going to use their plan against them. Pulling off his gauntlet, Tony stood up and pointed the business end at himself. If he could aim it just right, he could send it crashing into Obadiah, forcing him through the mirror.

“Tony!” Rhody shouted, “Get back down!”

Tony was too busy flipping switches in a panel on the gauntlet to look up. “This will work! I can send this flying into Obadiah and push him through the mirror! I just need a stable surface to take aim off of!”

Both Agent and Rhodey paused and looked at each other. With a silent nod they both grabbed the other’s wrists and formed a make shift table with their arms for Tony to set the gauntlet on. “I sure hope this works,” Rhodey muttered as Tony tried to aim.  

Tony watched as his friends fought Obadiah. He didn’t want to hit any of them, but he didn’t want to shout at them to move and give Obadiah a heads up, either. “ _Comeon comeon comeon_ ,” he muttered to himself. Finally, there was an opening.

Pepper’s eyes blew wide as she realized what would happen if Tony fired the gauntlet so close to his chest. But before she could say anything, Tony got his opening.

 _NOW_! “Fire in the hole!”

“ _Tony NO_!”

Two things happened at once. The gauntlet went shooting off of Rhodey and Agent, hitting Obadiah square in the chest and shoving him straight through the portal that Strange and Loki had conjured up in the mirror, and Tony went flying back from the force of the repulsor hitting his chest, just as Pepper feared. The gauntlet burned a perfect circle into him as it flew away. Tony reached out as he fell, pricking his finger on one of the last spindles left in the hall.  

Tony felt like his head was under water. All of the sounds in the hall were suddenly really muted. Pepper was shouting at him but everything was so distorted he couldn’t make out what she was saying. She looked upset though. He didn’t want her to be upset. He tried to tell her so but it was getting really hard to keep his eyes open. He’d find out what was bothering her later. And then he’d fix it. He’d build her something too. Like a suit. Then they could fly around together. Yeah, that’d be fun… then everything went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Deadpool isn't a mutant I was all that familiar with and I still haven't seen the latest film yet. But as I was writing this, Strange just sort of gave this explanation about Wade to Loki. I liked it, so it stayed. I doubt it's accurate to anything though.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The end

Tony woke up with a snort. Sitting up straight, he groggily looked around his workshop. Darcy was next to him, suppressing a smile as she peeled off some paperwork stuck to his cheek. Huh. Where’d that come from? Tony didn’t do _paper_. Much less paper _work_.

“Sounded like you were having quite the dream, Tony.”

“…I dreamed I was a princess…” he said, recalling his sleeping beauty type dream.

“…Huh. I’ve had that dream once myself,” she said, shuffling papers. “Did you get the prince?”

“No.”

“Too bad. Sigh here please.”

Tony sighed and signed where she indicated then yawned.

“Come on, Sleeping Beauty, why don’t we get some food into you?”

“Yeah, ok. But no more Disney movies for team movie night.”

Darcy scoffed at the very idea. It was blasphemy, really. “Ha! Yeah, _no_. Lelo and Stitch is up next.”

As the two of them made their way to the elevator, Anthony glanced back into his workshop.

“It’s just Tony.”

_Sure, Tony. Whatever you say._

Darcy looked back around the workshop before looking at Tony in confusion. “Who are you talking to?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haha...


End file.
